The roll-out of 5G across the entire world is going to largely affect how we connect and network with each other. In business, 5G will boost the stability and connectivity of existing Internet of Things (IoT) applications while bolstering new IoT systems. It won’t take long for our cities, homes, and ways of living to adapt to all of the benefits 5G will bring, not to mention the added communication abilities, like staying in touch while traveling or connecting to the car next to you in traffic.

Ultimately, 5G will effect change in society, digitalization, and economies in almost all aspects of life and business, but for now, 5G operators are working to ensure mobile connectivity is strong and stable before expanding their focus to other industries and fields. Once that’s done, work will pivot to optimizing connectivity across consumers, businesses, and supply chains.

The Growing Need for Connectivity

Every year, the world’s data volume increases, and with more Internet-enabled devices than ever, 5G has become crucial. Soon, existing technologies won’t be able to meet IoT’s requirements unless 5G is available everywhere. As an example, in 2017, Germany doubled its data volume from 2015, reaching 1 billion gigabytes in a single year.

Experts calculated the number of connected devices and sensors reached between 50 and 500 billion in 2020. With these numbers growing every year, 5G offers unlimited possibilities for our global economy and productivity. Once we reach a certain global data volume, we will need 5G to maintain and scale up business and consumer needs.

LTE Today, 5G Tomorrow

3G made it possible for us to use our phones on a mobile connection with relative ease and speed, and it catalyzed the popularity and manufacturing of smartphones. With the roll-out of 4G LTE, data transfer rates skyrocketed, and it remains the most popular and most-used network even today. 4G LTE offers speeds up to 100 megabits per second, although many of us will experience those speeds first-hand on and off.

It’s possible to boost LTE bandwidths for download speeds up to 4,000 megabits (4 gigabits) per second, and while this is super fast, LTE was designed for smartphone use. On the other hand, 5G will be optimized from the ground-up for IoT connectivity. 5G speeds are faster than much of the Wi-Fi connections available around the world: stable speeds up to 20 gigabits per second aren’t out of the question with 5G.

In comparison, the first smartphones with 1G were eight million times slower than phones will be with 5G. When you put it that way, it seems 5G opens up all kinds of new doors. Now we can dream of transmitting data in real-time with no quality loss. We can theoretically connect 100 billion mobile devices around the world and access them all at the same time. 5G offers stable connection quality and an obvious increase in speeds (moving up to 500 kilometers per hour). That’s like driving from New York City to Los Angeles in nine hours, rather than the 41 hours it would normally take by car.

And besides smartphones, in our increasingly digital world, 5G will be a major asset in applications to many areas and industries. As a result, 5G will become the key technology for connectivity in the near future.

Unlimited Potential

In addition to IoT, the Industrial IoT, a major consumer of mobile connectivity technology, will benefit immensely from 5G. 5G will offer continuous connectivity and data transmission between robots, systems, machines, and people. And analysis will be done on-demand using edge computing, which is an emerging technology that we won’t be able to utilize fully without 5G.

The number of connected sensors and devices is expected to grow at a massive rate, and problems will be pinpointed in real-time rather than after the fact. Optimization can be done in real-time (or close to it), minimizing downtime, revenue loss, and loss of productivity. 5G will enable humanless tasks, not just in driving, but for industrial tasks like picking up and delivering goods, machine-to-machine communication, and loading and unloading materials.

Connectivity in a Digital World

Digital transformation (thanks in part to the pandemic) is driving the growth and expansion of many emerging technologies. But in the field of network connectivity, digital transformation is leading the charge for what to focus on and for use cases. High-quality connectivity is the most important end goal of 5G, especially for both large and small IoT systems. A dropped connection could lead to the factory floor production getting halted.

IoT and 5G experts know that all of the possibilities are still unmapped and unknown. As we arm ourselves with more stable and scalable emerging technologies, we will uncover more ideas, innovations, and opportunities that were previously thought of as unfeasible. Smart farming, which involves keeping an eye on all animals at any given time, crop health, soil moisture, changing weather, and much more, will finally be possible and closer to real-time observation than ever before. Accordingly, we’ll see a large increase in sustainability and efficiency in food production.

5G’s Prospects

Although we don’t know when 5G will reach market maturity, it’s obvious that it will bring about more possibilities, efficiencies, and connectivity than we’ve ever experienced before. It’s unclear what new ideas will be unlocked by the power of 5G. But one thing is certain: The world will never be the same when this next level of network connectivity is fully realized.

And although this brings about more efficiency and productivity at the end of the day, we must still prioritize cybersecurity in IoT applications used by the media and entertainment industries. Without adequate and robust security protocols, there are substantial consequences. For example, major releases could lose significant amounts of revenue by hackers who publish the film ahead of its premiere.

IoT in Entertainment

IoT is being used in media and entertainment applications in a variety of interesting ways from Hollywood in Los Angeles to Bollywood in Bombay. First, the industry is using IoT to increase its customer base and profitability. By getting an idea of their customers, preferences, and household demographics, companies are building more accurate profiles of where their revenue comes from using data taken from social media, wearables, mobile devices, surveys, and more. This allows companies to develop or acquire more content that meshes well with their main audience, which in turn increases profit.

Having user profiles of customers yields incredible insights through advertising efforts. Ads can be targeted more granularly and with more focused copy and visuals. As the effectiveness of an ad campaign grows, the return on investment exponentially increases for the company by reaching other customers that have similar traits and by convincing existing customers to buy.

On the other hand, companies can include better-targeted advertisements in their media according to what their customers prefer in content and ad delivery. They can also schedule the media to run at a time when their customers are already watching something else they enjoy. Lastly, companies can run marketing campaigns and promotional offers at highly effective times as a result of knowing their customer base.

For theme parks and cruises, sensors and electronic bracelets create a new technological, hands-free experience for customers. These bracelets allow theme parks and cruises to track their customers’ movements for analysis and optimization. IoT also helps companies utilize preventative maintenance of media equipment based on sensor data.

While IoT is bringing about better customer experiences for the media and entertainment industry, it’s also opening up companies to cybersecurity incidents and hacking attempts. The industry is already being attacked frequently, especially around big releases, but we can fortify our efforts to prevent malicious attackers from successfully gaining access to sensitive and private data.

The Current State of Security

It’s crucial for media and entertainment companies to figure out what their customers want, and the data generated and collected in the search for answers to these problems are highly sought-after. Data usage is prominent in the industry, and success depends upon relationships between partners, the company and the customer, and the customers and the content. Thus, it’s imperative that a company’s reputation is known to be secure, trustworthy, and friendly.

When a company in the industry is developing and distributing a creative product, it uses outside vendors often to achieve various goals. For this purpose, IoT is a great tool. But because this creates more complexity in workflows and processes, it can become complicated to secure assets and information.

According to research by Hiscox, more than half of surveyed media and entertainment companies had three or more cyber attacks over a 12-month period. This is no small number, especially because these companies are managing extremely sensitive data like financial, consumer, and personal information. What’s worse is that outside vendors hired in the past are also being targeted, which could compromise the entire supply chain.

Strengthening Security

To reinforce a media and entertainment company’s security procedures and protocols, there are three key areas to concentrate on. First, the prevention of attacks and successful hacks is paramount. This can be accomplished by accurately assessing any and all risks and vulnerabilities to the company and its data. Cybersecurity should be prioritized from the start of any project that involves IoT technology and devices or sensors. Staff must be trained to adequately recognize when a malicious attack is occurring.

Second, detection is an important area to focus on. Track all attempted hacks and attacks and analyze the time of day, day of the week, country of origin, and other dimensions to find a pattern that you can act upon. Develop a coordinated response plan to enact if an attack is discovered. And set up a secure portal that employees can use to report any issues or intrusions.

Lastly, mitigate, mitigate, mitigate. Implementing IoT technology is no small or inexpensive feat. After you’ve worked hard to develop a plan, train employees, and analyze past attack attempts, don’t let your efforts fall to the wayside. Mitigation involves prevention, detection, containment, and assessment of cyberattacks. It also includes a continuous review of security upgrades and updates to devices and software.

Many industries, including the media and entertainment industry, overestimate security and underestimate their risk. In almost all cases, your company could always be doing more to protect your assets and information.

IoT Innovation in Entertainment Is Just Starting

Don’t delay in implementing IoT technology if it’s the right tool to take your company and profits to the next level. Cybersecurity is a major concern, but it mustn’t scare you from utilizing IoT in your business operations — the benefits far outweigh the negatives. To be safe, keep your assets well-guarded with a strong security plan and solution from the get-go.

How have you experienced IoT in entertainment? As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

At-home patient care has made great strides in the past decade, with the advancement of technology in IV infusion pumps, CPAP machines, and asthma inhalers. Unfortunately, because patients often misuse or underuse their at-home medical devices, providers often see poorer outcomes for their patients when compared to those who regularly use their home-based medical devices.

Tracking these outcomes and patient home situations are difficult for a variety of reasons: lack of knowledge of how devices are being used, how often and how exactly they’re used for off-label purposes, how much they malfunction, how often and how they are misused, and how effective they are when used properly and as intended. But by adding the Internet of Things (IoT) into the mix, medical applications can track usage, monitor devices, and analyze the output to provide clinicians, insurers, researchers, regulators, and device manufacturers realistic data. This data can be used to measure outcomes and optimize the next generation of medical devices.

Staying Healthy at Home

Before the pandemic, non-clinical settings like the workplace or home were growing in popularity for medical devices developed and meant for use in a medical setting. But with the current state of things, at-home medical devices are more important than ever to ensure patients stay safe and at home. At-home care is more convenient, easier on the wallet, and eases anxiety for the patient. It also helps patients avoid exposure to other illnesses at the doctor’s office or at the hospital.

Experts say IoT should be incorporated into any medical device that could be used in a non-clinical setting. IoT technology generates real-time data all day and night, and it can notify a provider if the patient is misusing or underusing their medical machine. It also can detect malfunctions, inefficiencies, and maintenance problems before the machine breaks down and leaves the patient without a device.

Infusion Pumps for IV

There are public IV bars where you can go for an IV boost if you’re feeling down or exhausted from physical exertion. These pumps are being sent home more often with patients for antibiotic delivery, hydration, parenteral (meaning outside of the mouth and digestive tract) nutrition, and post-operative pain management. When you go to a public IV bar, you’ll be injected by a registered or certified nurse.

Infusion pumps are complex to use, and each model from every manufacturer has different controls and prompts to learn. As a result, patients can accidentally mess up the dosage or insert the wrong IV bag or medication if they’re not paying attention and taking multiple medications. With IoT, we can keep track of dosage, inventory, and monitor the time of day usage, temperature, heart rate, and the patient’s qualitative condition to help patients avoid these errors. IoT applications can also alert the patient’s medical provider if there are any serious predicted problems as well as speak directly to the patient to help them learn how to better interact with their infusion pump.

CPAP Machines

CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machines are becoming increasingly popular for home treatment. These machines help patients with obstructive sleep apnea, which increases blood pressure, causes atrial fibrillation, and escalates the effects of heart disease. For patients who first get a CPAP machine at their home, there is initial discomfort as well as a significant learning curve. Additionally, patients don’t see immediate benefits to using the machine because it takes time for the effects to become apparent.

As a result, patients find it difficult to adhere to their PAP therapy, and less than 50% of patients use their CPAP machine for over four hours a night. This machine delivers the best therapy for sleep apnea, but it’s so uncomfortable to use that patients would rather take the risk of causing other health issues than keep it on all night. Insurance companies have become circumspect about buying expensive CPAP machines for patients and have started renting machines with monitoring installed to patients instead. If the patient wants to keep the machine long-term, they can eventually buy the machine from the insurance company.

With IoT technology, physicians can monitor their patients and analyze data about underuse of the machine. This can help the provider start a frank conversation with the patient geared towards improving the patient’s experience with the CPAP machine. Because insurance companies often try to get out of paying for replacement supplies like tubing, filters, and masks for patients, IoT technology can help the patient make a stronger case for their consistent usage of the machine. Unfortunately, many patients find the monitoring and rent-to-buy business model intrusive and inappropriate.

Inhalers for Asthma

For patients with asthma and breathing problems living in wildfire-prone areas like Los Angeles or polluted areas like New Delhi, living life “normally” can be extremely difficult for half of the year. Because these patients often cannot go outside without triggering an attack or episode, it’s imperative that the patient maintains their wellness from the comfort of their own home. But metered-dose inhalers (MDI) are frequently misused by patients, leading to uncontrolled asthma that comes with life-threatening risk. When this irreversible event occurs, the patient’s provider will often increase their MDI dosage or prescribe a more powerful medication.

When a patient is experiencing a breathing episode, they face difficulty in correctly administering their MDI because it requires hand-lung coordination, proper inhalation, and physical dexterity. But if you’ve ever used an inhaler, you know that there is no feedback to show that you administered the inhaler correctly or effectively. You have to wait a minute or so to see if breathing got easier for you. As a result, it’s easy to forget a step or become overwhelmed by the fear that you’re unable to breathe correctly.

The most common trend over time for the patient is to underuse the MDI, which requires excess use of rescue medication and increases the risk of a serious or life-threatening episode. Providers cannot go off of the patient’s recall memory about how well they used their MDI; it’s been shown that patients tend to misremember how well they administered their MDI medication. But new MDIs provide some hope: they can measure and monitor how much of the medication is reaching the patient’s lungs, how the device is being used, and under what circumstances the patient needed their MDI. With this data available, the patient’s provider can tailor their training, device selection, and messaging to the specific patient’s needs. The provider can even make changes to what device they prescribe for future patients.

Keeping up with Therapy at Home

Because the very nature of IoT is to generate data in real-time without any sort of break from monitoring machines, the data should help patients and providers become more communicative, more empathetic, and more understanding. No patient wants to end up in the emergency room for underusing their medication, and IoT can help patients avoid the risk of becoming hospitalized by creating a more transparent patient experience and by alerting providers sooner.

Embracing change and adapting to newer paradigms is essential to surviving and thriving in the tech industry. When Dogtown Media first opened for business in 2011, we knew that the Internet of Things (IoT) was something special. Since then, we’ve striven every day to establish ourselves as a leading IoT app development organization.

Well, it turns out that hard work and perseverance pays off — TopDevelopers.co has named Dogtown Media as a leading IoT app developer!

IoT is evolving fast. It’s imperative that developers in this space keep up with the latest trends and rapidly become efficient at implementing them. We understand the importance and urgency that often come with business augmentation. Whether you’re a fast-growing startup or a large enterprise organization looking to add new capabilities to your fold, consider working with us.

Of course, you don’t have to take our word for it. Check out our portfolio! We’ve worked on everything from cardiac arrest emergency protocols and mobile education technology to apps for better road trips and sleep. Our varied array of work experience, dedication, and proven track record of happy clients are why leading organizations such as Google, YouTube, The United Nations, Lexus, and RedBull have chosen to work with us.

Landing on TopDevelopers.co’s list of top IoT app developers is no easy feat. They meticulously evaluate numerous organizations in this field across the world, not just in our hometown of Los Angeles or even the United States. After narrowing down their list, they trim it even further by examining the experience of every candidate and their history of consistent client satisfaction. With all that said, it’s an amazing honor to make the cut!

Besides being dubbed a top wearable app developer, Dogtown Media was also recently named a top U.S. mobile app developer by TopDevelopers.co. We were also fortunate to be lauded as one of California’s leading app developers by Clutch!

Thanks so much to TopDevelopers.co for recognizing our work. And thanks to our clients, team, and community as well. We often say, “If you can dream it, we can build it!” But you’re really the ones who make this mantra possible.

Who is TopDevelopers.co?

TopDevelopers.co is a widely respected directory and review platform for B2B IT service providers. They take a neutral approach to analyzing companies. The team of analysts at TopDevelopers.co vets organizations through stringent parameters which ensure that only the most competitive firms, businesses, enterprises, and entrepreneurs are filtered through their process. This helps service seekers find the most appropriate solutions for their needs.

In fact, lack of cybersecurity in IoT systems is actually hindering the field from reaching its full potential. To make matters worse, security features for IoT applications can vary from developer to developer. It, unfortunately, isn’t uncommon for security to take a backseat in the development process until the end, when there’s no budget or time left to implement a proper solution.

But this approach isn’t cutting it. In IoT applications, it’s not enough to create a set-it-and-forget-it security layer; IoT isn’t like a PC or any previous technology we’ve encountered before. Because there are so many sensors, devices, and a cloud component, it takes a lot of thought and planning to create a robust, secure IoT system.

Could AI help solve this conundrum before it’s too late? The short answer is yes and no. The long answer? Keep reading.

The Bright Side: Helpful AI

Right now, AI development within IoT applications is limited to data analysis, predictive analytics, and generating notifications for a human to take a closer look. It does very well in this area, and there’s still a lot to learn and apply. But even this application results in a lot of false positives for humans to sift through manually. In this case, applying AI to assist with IoT cybersecurity could cause more issues than it helps solve.

Is it possible for AI to train on known patterns of security attacks and breaches? Yes, but we would have to put the IoT system itself through the attacks multiple times so the AI can learn each nuance properly. And when hackers change up their methods and patterns, we’ll have to ensure our AI-enhanced cybersecurity protocols are trained on these changes immediately. Otherwise, this type of AI application can quickly make itself become obsolete and useless.

Whereas a company may have full-time dedicated cybersecurity and IT teams, it would also be imperative that they employ a full-time team of ethical hackers to constantly come up with new ways to breach their company’s security protocols. Even then, it’s not a 100% guarantee that an IoT system is fully secured against any type of hacking attempt.

One major hurdle is the lack of training data available for these breaches; companies who’ve been breached in the past are not likely to openly give out details of how and why their security systems were breached. Because of the nature of the Internet, anyone could use this information maliciously against other companies or against the same company again.

And more importantly, releasing information about a breach implicates personal and sensitive data that could upset customers.

The Dark Side: Malicious AI

AI is what you make it. If you’re developing AI with malicious intent, it can certainly be used to bring down a business’s operations for a few days or leak private data into the open waters of the Internet.

And as hackers get smarter and more creative with the increasing number of tools at their disposal, AI will be used to help breaches successfully occur, rather than help prevent them. This type of AI has already been lovingly named by experts as “enemy-AI”.

Enemy-AI is arguably easier to develop, train (it’ll take any training data it can get because any information can help it facilitate a security breach), and apply to attacks, especially when compared to using AI as a defense mechanism.

When we discussed companies not releasing breach information to the public, we see that with enemy-AI, there is no ethical standpoint. With hackers, we must assume that they have no morals or ethics that they follow; if something can yield losses for a company, we must assume that hackers find that information valuable as a result.

Which Will Take the Cake?

The cynic in us believes the malicious AI can easily win over the defense AI. But there is hope yet because it’s likely that neither “side” will ever truly win. There is a ton of value in using AI for IoT security. As far as what this value is used for depends on who gets to it first and who implements it best.

Ultimately, developers must prioritize security as a main part of IoT systems development. At our Los Angeles-based mobile app development studio, we’re planning for security layers in our applications from Day 1; we believe cybersecurity is so important to connected devices and systems that our own CTO is an ethical hacker!

Although AI has limitless potential for every industry today, we mustn’t expect it to do all of the heavy lifting, especially in the ever-evolving world of cybersecurity. AI is a tool that imperfectly does what we tell it to do, and we mustn’t expect anything more from it — at least for now.

By now, we’ve all heard of or experienced the transformation of living rooms and kitchen areas into smart spaces with the help of devices like Alexa. But Internet of Things (IoT) development is also reshaping the commercial and industrial landscape with automation, predictive analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Manufacturers and suppliers around the world are already capitalizing on major benefits throughout the supply chain from industrial IoT (IIoT). In fact, our next industrial revolution (called “the Industrial Revolution 4.0” by many experts) is riding on the cusp of IIoT’s newest features.

IoT Is Catalyzing the 4th Industrial Revolution

Using IIoT, AI, and edge computing, enterprises can combine data from multiple sources to distill insights to apply across the entire operation. This includes information from customers, sensors, service providers, employee input, and more. The result is real-time analysis that outputs actionable information, creating an automated system that just keeps improving with each iteration.

As Robert Schmid, the Digital IoT Chief Technologist at Deloitte, explains, “In IIoT technology, sensors are attached to physical assets. Those sensors gather data, store it wirelessly, and use analytics and machine learning to take some kind of action.”

The meteoric rise of IIoT occurred within the first two decades of IoT’s growth. No one knows where IIoT will take us or its long-term consequences. But we do know it’ll bring businesses unparalleled efficiency and unprecedented capabilities, resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars saved. Linear, rigid supply chain structures will become interconnected, dynamic, and highly-optimized systems.

And at the center of these systems are the customers’ needs.

Ensuring Customers’ Expectations Are Exceeded

Providing customers and clients with a great experience is the main goal of any business. With massive amounts of data available for support teams to look through, customers can get a clear picture of progress on a problem; it’s easy to track whether the customer’s package left the warehouse yet or where it might be stuck in the shipping process. And with this information and the help of chatbots and data analysis dashboards, any real-time demands can be met with accurate information.

Many experts believe that the power of IIoT depends on notifications and updates to react to sensors and machine data accordingly. After all, if companies aren’t going to use the data to continuously improve their systems or customer experience, what’s the point?

Predictive and Preventative Maintenance

Similarly, if there is no notification for emergencies, why even go through the trouble of installing advanced monitoring technology?

Because every machine is outfitted with sensors, it’s easy to keep track of which are more likely to be in need of repair soon. In many cases, sensors can be set to send an alert when they reach a certain threshold level. Engineers can be dispatched to the problem, drastically decreasing downtime in factories and supply chains.

IIoT is also bolstering the abilities of humans. Using infrared thermography, mechanics, repair technicians, and engineers can now get a new perspective on what’s going on inside the machines. Different colors can represent faulty connections, abnormal motors, tank levels, and pipe temperatures.

Instead of knowing when each machine’s lifecycle end is coming up, sensors can signal important updates for maintenance or replacement. Machine learning tracks minute changes in readings, so when the difference is significant enough, it sends an automatic alert to the appropriate party.

This comes in handy for maintaining a safe work environment. Running well-oiled machines results in huge improvements to worker welfare. IIoT also helps in case of emergencies. Sensors can monitor employees’ locations in tight or dark spaces, in case of an evacuation or accident.

A Future with Augmented Reality

One of IoT’s greatest strengths is its ability to adapt and work side-by-side with other disruptive technologies like AI. And IIoT is no different. DAQRI is a Los Angeles-based studio specializing in augmented reality (AR). They’re developing an AR helmet for engineers that will allow them to see 4D images above machines, instructions, and a map of every feature.

Another company, named UpSkill, is using AR to create wearables for field employees to send media and complete checklists, tasks, and work orders. This happens in real-time; managers can watch their employees’ progress by checking their IIoT platform.

Wearables and handhelds are a more affordable way for traveling salespeople to keep in touch with the rest of their colleagues and send automated notifications. Although they aren’t going to be AR-enabled for a while, it’s worth mentioning wearables; according to recent reports, more than 50 billion machines will connect to the Internet by 2020, and many of these will be wearables and handheld devices.

IIoT Will Affect Every Industry

AR enables employees to remain organized and helps train new employees at record speed. Ongoing maintenance keeps costs down for businesses and helps machines run longer. All of these savings in time, cost, and energy translate into a better experience for customers and a cheaper product all-around.

Machine learning algorithms working alongside traditional IoT systems multiply the true power of IIoT. The idea of “set it and forget” is a huge need for IIoT; it’ll drive many AI-fueled automations and IoT-enabled features while simultaneously pushing the envelope in sensor innovation.

And this doesn’t even begin to touch upon the plethora of other disruptive technologies that IIoT is integrating into warehouses and factories at a faster rate than ever before. IIoT will bring an infinite amount of possibilities, from the very top of the supply chain straight down to the consumer.

It’ll completely revolutionize every industry as we know it today. Are you ready for the next Industrial Revolution?

The last month has been an absolute whirlwind for Dogtown Media. Not only were we chosen as a winner of the third annual North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Defense Innovation Challenge, but we got to present our solution at NITEC18 last week!

Read on to learn about Battlefield One, our unique solution, and how innovators around the world are coming together to keep NATO’s technology on the cutting-edge.

A Competition to Catalyze Innovation

The Defense Innovation Challenge is a competition hosted by the NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency. It was created to foster innovative technological solutions that could address some of the biggest problems facing NATO. This challenge and NITEC, an annual three-day tech summit, are part of NATO’s largest initiative to modernize its technology since the end of the Cold War!

As Kevin J. Scheid, General Manager of the NCI Agency, puts it: “We are seeking to broaden engagement with innovative technology drivers as NATO undergoes its largest technological modernization in decades.” Open to small and medium enterprises as well as all academic institutions from all 29 NATO Nations, the contest is generally “aimed at accelerating transformational, state-of-the-art technology solutions from small businesses and academia in support of NATO C4ISR and cyber capabilities.”

This year’s challenge focused on digital innovation, specifically in areas such as natural language processing, utilizing the Internet of Things (IoT) for security, autonomous sensors, and mobile app development for both defense and government organizations. We’re extremely proud and honored to be picked as winners of the “Mobile Apps for Defense Users” category!

An Event to ‘Expand the Ecosystem’

NITEC is organized by NATO, the NCI Agency, and the Federal Ministry of Defense of Germany. With well over 600 world leaders in attendance, the event serves as an opportunity for leaders in tech, politics, security, and military sectors to examine and address the current technological obstacles that NATO faces.

This year’s summit, NITEC18, was held in Berlin, Germany, from May 22nd to the 24th. Its theme was ‘NATO’s Digital Endeavour: Expanding the Ecosystem’. Winners of this year’s Defense Innovation Challenge were invited to receive their awards and showcase their solutions to the NATO leaders and stakeholders in attendance.

We knew we couldn’t miss this event. So we sent Marc Fischer, our CEO and part-time digital nomad, all the way from our HQ for development in Los Angeles to Berlin, Germany.

All of the Action in Berlin

From the beginning of the first day, NITEC18 was non-stop action. The three days of the event were comprised of discussion sessions, workshops, and presentations aimed at revamping NATO to be prepared for the digital age. One of Marc’s favorite parts was the conference kickoff at Germany’s Federal Ministry of Defense.

This was a great chance to meet and mingle with a plethora of people from different walks of life. Government officials from all 29 NATO Nations and many more organizations got the opportunity to have candid one-on-one discussions with thought leaders from pioneers like Boeing, Belkin, and Airbus.

After the kickoff, a variety of workshops were given. They touched upon important topics like successful project bidding, NATO procurement procedures, and commercialization of products. Similarly, the presentations that followed afterward were also full of valuable information. Speakers included Thomas B. Modly, the Undersecretary of the U.S. Navy; Roger Krone, the CEO of Leidos; and Erich Staudacher, General Manager of AFCEA Europe.

While the events of NITEC ran the gamut in terms of variety, they were all laser-focused on one objective: innovation. Particularly, how do we bring new types of technologies to one of the most respected military forces in the world? Parts of NATO’s bureaucracy, a system formed during World War II, are in dire need of an update. International threats have not rested on their laurels; neither can NATO. Creating value for this international coalition that has defended the freedom of many countries across the world was undoubtedly the main focus of the event.

Battlefield One

While there were plenty of potential show-stealers, Marc’s favorite moment from NITEC18 was presenting Dogtown Media’s winning solution of the Defense Innovation Challenge to hundreds of leaders from around the world. After blending elements of IoT development, encryption, and wearables, we came up with Battlefield One, a solution that optimizes the battlefield performance of soldiers.

Battlefield One boils down to a wearable device and a paired, secure mobile app. Basically, a soldier wears the wearable device, which allows for his/her health to be monitored remotely in real-time. The soldier can send out an encrypted distress signal if things begin to look dire. This signal allows for a medic to be deployed to their location and administer life-saving treatment in the event of an emergency.

The current wearable prototype is equipped with sensors and scheduling mechanisms to ensure that wellness parameters like hydration are kept at safe levels. Battlefield One was designed to be used out in the field, either for training purpose or for real battle scenarios. There is still room on the wearable to include other sensors or equipment, depending on your particular needs.

Like any work-in-progress, there are still many factors and variables to attend to before Battlefield One reaches a final release iteration. NITEC18 served as a wonderful chance to gather great feedback and learn about awesome opportunities to bring Battlefield One to fruition and test it out on the field or maybe even commercialize it. No concrete plans have been set in stone, but there sure are a seemingly infinite number of possibilities in store for Battlefield One.

We’d like to take one last moment to thank NATO and the NCI Agency for choosing us as winners of the Defense Innovation Challenge and inviting us to NITEC18. It was an unforgettable experience, and it’s made us more excited than ever for the future of digital innovation.

The Defence Innovation Challenge is a competition created with the intent to bring innovative technology solutions to reality for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to utilize. Each year, it’s held by the NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency.

We’re extremely proud and honored to announce that, out of thousands of entrants, Dogtown Media has been selected as one of the winners of the third annual Defence Innovation Challenge!

Setting the Standard for “State-of-the-Art”

“We are seeking to broaden engagement with innovative technology drivers as NATO undergoes its largest technological modernization in decades,” says Kevin J. Scheid, General Manager of the NCI Agency.

Open to academic institutions as well as small and medium enterprises from all 29 NATO Nations, the challenge is “aimed at accelerating transformational, state-of-the-art technology solutions from small businesses and academia in support of NATO C4ISR and cyber capabilities,” per a statement on the official website.

For this year’s challenge, the NCI Agency decided to focus on digital innovation. This included areas like mobile app development for both defense and government organizations, data science for natural language processing and analytics, and the Internet of Things for security and autonomous sensors to be used in battle.

Bringing the Cutting-Edge to the Frontlines

Keeping a colossal organization like NATO on the cutting-edge is easier said than done. There are many facets, departments, and moving pieces in general. Between communication, data privacy, cybersecurity, military system optimizations, and improving soldier capabilities, it’s easy to see how even the governments of 29 nations could have their hands full. But these categories are just the tip of the iceberg.

Regardless of the size and number of problems to tackle, each is a necessary endeavor. Updating NATO’s fighting force to be technologically superior, to handle all matters of threats and enemies, and to run leaner, greener, and meaner than ever before requires deep innovation and expertise in each subject matter.

That’s why the Defence Innovation Challenge is a natural fit to help spur new technological adoption.

Our Solution to Improve Soldier Safety

We are extremely proud to be considered winners of the “Mobile Apps for Defense Users” category. There were undoubtedly hundreds of ingenious innovations entered into each focus area; it’s been a truly humbling experience.

Our proposed solution aims to improve health and wellness for those in the battlefield through a unique combination of IoT, encryption, and wearables. Essentially, soldiers wear a wearable device that allows for a medic to be deployed to their location and administer life-saving treatment during emergencies.

The solution is made to be used out in the field, either in training or in real battle scenarios. The distress beacon deployed is encrypted so that enemies cannot receive the message; only allies (field commander, medical tech, etc.) in a remote monitoring station do.

The wearable is also equipped with sensors, notifications, and scheduling mechanisms that ensure a soldier’s wellness parameters, like hydration, are at healthy levels. Currently, we’ve put together a prototype, but there are still a few factors we’d like to work out before revealing much more!

We’re Going to Berlin!

The winners of this year’s Defence Innovation Challenge have been invited to showcase their solutions at NITEC18, an annual flagship tech-centric conference held by the NCI Agency. Lasting three days, the event is meant to give insight into NATO’s technological needs and connect leaders of the organization with innovators who can solve those problems.

This year’s theme is “NATO’s Digital Endeavor: Expanding the Ecosystem.” The event will be held in Berlin, Germany, from May 22nd to the 24th. While it may be more than a hop and a skip away from our HQ for development in Los Angeles, we wouldn’t miss it for the world! Dogtown Media will be sending a representative to receive our award and present our solution to the NATO leaders and stakeholders in attendance.

We’d like to give another thanks to NATO and the NCI Agency for selecting us! This has already been an amazing experience so far, and we’re even more excited to see what the future holds for our solution.

Just how scared should we be of the Internet of Things (IoT)? It’s hard to say. Recent cybersecurity threats like Mirai have caused the news to paint the future of IoT as an unsafe hackathon free-for-all.

In his recent SXSW 2018 presentation, “Internet of Scary Things: Botnet in a Box,” our CTO Rob Pope separated fact from fiction by diving into what exactly happened during these now-infamous botnet attacks and giving a live demonstration of how they occur.

In case you missed the event, or you’re worried that Alexa is listening, or if you’re scared that your laundry machine is watching you, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Read on to find out.

There and Back Again

Rob Pope’s a man of many talents. He’s a four-time entrepreneur and software engineer who decided to switch to the other side after an extensive tenure in the cybersecurity field. As he puts it, when he “got a little bored of breaking into things, he decided to make them instead.” He co-founded Dogtown Media in 2012 and has been absolutely integral to the success of the L.A.-based development studio since its start.

Rob’s got a mind primed for tinkering, and it shows: To date, he’s helmed the launch of over 100 digital products. He’s always experimenting; two of his current side-projects are a self-driving remote car and hacking radio-finding software to emulate gate openers like key fobs and garage doors. On that note, while he may spend most of his day as a maker right now, he still very much has a security mindset.

Old habits die hard, and the overwhelming headlines about IoT security became irresistible to investigate.

Sifting Through the Hacking Hysteria

Rob’s seen his fair share of fearmongering; it was one of the primary reasons he decided to pivot from security to digital products. But the plethora of IoT threats making the media rounds couldn’t be ignored.

In September 2016, Bashlite, a malware that hijacks Linux systems to launch distributed denial-of-service attacks (DDOS), struck fear into the hearts of IoT device owners everywhere. Then, like a sequel trying to up the ante on the first movie, Mirai arrived. This malware hijacked networked Linux devices and turned them into bots, which could then be used in mass-scale network attacks.

After recruiting hundreds of thousands of devices like DVR players and security cameras, Mirai caused widespread internet outages across the eastern United States. And nevermind the fact that these two devices were around long before “IoT” became a buzzword; both were things, and both were connected to the Internet. That was all that was required for the media to have a field day.

Botnet in a Box

Is your washing machine coming to get you? Is someone with insidious motives changing the thermostat in your house? I’m watching the TV… but is the TV watching me?! These questions have taken on a whole new meaning in the post-Mirai era, and Rob wanted to get to the bottom of how accurate this picture was.

Luckily for him, the creator of Mirai open-sourced the malicious code. Unfortunately for Rob, it was released without instructions. After a few weekends of hacking it out and piecing various code repositories together, he finally got the botnet to work. But there was no time to celebrate — it was immediately apparent how inherently dangerous the botnet was.

Essentially, it takes random IP addresses on the Internet and tries to connect with them to spread itself. To address this, Rob “sandboxed” it in his “Botnet in a Box” Mirai demo: with a rack of five Raspberry Pi devices, his laptop as the command and control center, and a private network to connect them on, Rob could simulate a denial-of-service (DNS) attack.

With a single command, Rob could infect one Pi. Within moments, not only would all of the other Pis be infected, but they had overflooded Rob’s laptop and rendered it inoperable.

Mind the Gap

Rob’s demonstration at SXSW 2018 showed off the power some of these malicious programs can have, but to understand the gap between the news and reality, context is needed. Sure, these attacks are sophisticated. And yes, pretty much anything can be hacked, given enough effort and time (and coffee). But to understand why everything isn’t being hacked, you have to start with the “why.”

The monetary motivation for hacking a smart fridge just isn’t the same as hacking a bank account. The majority of criminals want your money, they’re not interested in watching you eat popcorn while you binge Netflix. Not every device has a great use for this purpose. This is why you can read about a multitude of ways to hack cars but never see reports of drivers having their cars automatically drive off the road. And of course, the cybersecurity and IoT industries aren’t exactly complaining about the hype — it generates astronomical amounts of attention for them.

While Rob contends that the chasm between reality and news is quite wide, it’s still prudent to protect yourself. After all, there is still a degree of risk. Gaining an understanding of what the attacks are possible of doing and why someone would want to employ them is a great place to start. Besides this, Rob recommends a few actions for IoT developers and enthusiasts:

1. Remove any unneeded services that you don’t need to be running all the time.
2. Drop your default accounts and ensure your password is strong.
3. Do not put things directly on the Internet.
4. Use firewalls.
5. Encrypt everything!
6. Use certificate-based authentication on your devices.
7. Update your software regularly.
8. Run services with lowest account permissions possible.
9. Limit updates to signed firmware only.
10. Disable all unnecessary physical ports.

Stay safe out there! We hope this gave you a better understanding of the hype and reality of IoT security.

We’ve been doing a deep-dive into the Internet of Things (IoT) recently. That’s because IoT’s rate of expansion can’t be understated. Artificial Intelligence and IoT developers are currently creating a renaissance in manufacturing. Movie companies are eyeing IoT to enhance entertainment. 2018 will be the year IoT becomes more specialized for catering to specific needs of various industries. And healthcare and health insurance are near the top of the list of areas that IoT is poised to disrupt on a profound level soon.

Multitudes of IoT Applications in Medicine

IoT devices improve efficiency, provide new ways to use traditional tools, and create a more connected hospital and clinic. Patients are seen in record time, doctors automatically send new prescriptions with minimal preparation, and pharmacists can connect to the patient’s insurance company easily.

The concept of IoT being a custom software or program specifically built for healthcare is priceless for entire city hospital systems. If you’re a MedTech developer based in a large city, like New York or Los Angeles, you probably know there is a huge demand for custom-coded projects for clinics, hospitals, and insurance companies.

A Common Problem

Mobile IoT apps are in high demand to connect patients and doctors to the hospital’s system. However, one big hiccup for healthcare and insurance providers trying to leverage this technology is the cybersecurity risk. Because IoT is beginning to offer fully customized solutions, the best thing to do is hire cybersecurity experts to take care of firewalls and other precautions.

“Maybe I can skip the cybersecurity professional for now,” you think. Don’t sit on your laurels about securing your IoT software and connected devices. Last year, the fifth most targeted industry by hackers was healthcare. This fact becomes more alarming when you consider that IoT is notorious for being a hacking target as well.

Just One of Many Industry Specializations

Even with this enormous risk of data breach, IDC predicted global spend on IoT technology will reach almost $1.5 trillion by 2021. IoT will enable doctors to track patient health whether or not they’re at the hospital anymore. Smart glasses are putting Augmented Reality in the ER and helping train new doctors.

Besides health, other types of insurance companies are offering discounts for people who wear monitoring devices. The data is fed to the insurance companies for creating and improving IoT applications.  Car insurance companies are also offering lower premiums if you use pre-approved vehicle telematics devices which enhance navigation, safety, and communication in the car.

By the end of 2018, we’ll start to see IoT becoming ubiquitous across a multitude of industries. While each industry may differ drastically, the common theme that we’ll see with IoT is that it will tackle specific issues that have eluded industry experts for years. As IoT gets tailored for particular scenarios, it’ll begin to solve tougher problems that had no solutions before.